Johanna Baxter

I thank every hon. Member who has participated in the debate. I cannot do justice to all the contributions in the time that I have, but the strength and depth of feeling expressed by colleagues across the House should send a strong message to President Putin that this is a heinous crime to which we all object. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) reminds us of the urgency of the issue. As he said, justice delayed is justice denied. As I mentioned earlier, this summer 53,000 children are expected to attend summer camps in Russia. We need to ensure that those children return home. To reiterate the point, there can be no lasting peace in Ukraine without the return of these children. I ask the Minister to again consider sanctions, in particular aligning our sanctions on individuals involved in the forced and illegal deportation of these children with those that have been applied by the US and EU. I also ask for a little clarity—he may be able to write to me afterwards—on the terms of reference for the special tribunal for the crime of aggression and whether those will cover this issue. Also, will the Government continue to investigate whether these crimes meet the definition of genocide under international law? I thank the Minister for his commitment to get back to me on the national day of action, which would certainly help to raise awareness of the issue. I also plead with the Government to look again at the issue of rehabilitation for these children, who will have gone through severe trauma. If we are able to return them home, they will need a lot of support. I thank every hon. Member who contributed so powerfully to the debate. Question put and agreed to. Resolved, That this House has considered the matter of returning forcibly deported children to Ukraine.